Clean.....or much cleaner

[vacu-finder]

I have read many posts on this site about cleaning performance.
Just like to add my 2 bits worth on Cleaning performance of different types of Vacuums, models, makes and what have you. This Vacuum works better than this one...etc....etc....etc......
Ok....so a good running vacuum will clean well providing the brush roll is satisfactory and the bag is not totally full as this does reduce suction power.

Case in point I used a small 7amp upright with barely 50 inches of pull at the end of the hose. Apartments were wall to wall carpet from one end to the other.
On 2 ocassions I used a commercial carpet cleaner made by Carpet Express, they have ton's of power and do a fantastic job of cleaning.
First time there was quite a bit of crud, that was before I started using the tiny 7amp Vacuum.......A year and half later I was amazed that the carpet was barley dirty after using the carpet cleaner.. This is after walking with shoes on after hiking trails, working in dirty shops.......etc.......etc.....and every day living.

This tells me that it is not necessarily what Vacuum you use, but how you use that Vacuum. There is a better way to Vacuum..!
Give me your take on this, would like to hear some other opinions.

 

[trebor]

You are so right!

The older Royals and Hoovers and Kirbys were much less than 7amps. Part of the issue is filtration. The old sateen bags leaked like sieves, but kept the air flowing. Paper bags restrict the airflow quickly. Now the polyester electrostatic material used in top of the line bags offer high airflow and high filtration as the bag fills.

A good belt, and a clean, properly adjusted brushroll contribute to effective cleaning performance, as does slow, methodical coverage of the carpet, with repetitive coverage of the heavily trafficked areas.

Yes, the three B's belt bag, brush are the keys to maintaining performance,actually achieving effective cleaning is done by regular and thorough use of the vacuum cleaner.

 

[sanitairered]

What kind of 7 amp vacuum do you have?
They may clean well for the time, but their filtration is horrible. I would rather have a 12 amp vacuum that not only picks up lots of dirt and dust, but holds it in too! After all, the reason you vacuum your house is to clean it, right? The 50 year old kirby might pick up lots of dirt, but if it blows it right back in the air, what's the point of cleaning? My two cents.

 

[trebor]

Apparently...

you missed this sentence in my post

"Now the polyester electrostatic material used in top of the line bags offer high airflow and high filtration as the bag fills."

Amps have little to do with the ability to clean carpet as history has proved. Effective nozzle deign, and bag, belt and brush are more important. Lots of 12 amp vacuums that don't clean well at all have been built. The Royal metal uprightts are 7 and 8 amps

 

[sanitairered]

That wasn't directed at you Trebor, it was more of a response to the original post. vacu-finder said 'give me your take on this' and I did. I agree with most of what you're saying, though.

 

[suckolux]

And , lets not forget, it never all comes up! My Dyson dc 18 is not a deep cleaner, but it always finds missed bits! The bin does not lie.

 

[kirbylover]

I would like to see a modern version of a Kirby 500 series that has 3 or 4 amps but modern bag/filtration and improved nozzle design. It's smaller than the Gen2 or G-series Kirbys so it doesn't need 6-7 amps (or whatever they are exactly).

On one of the facebook pages someone mentioned using a Rainbow after vacuuming with their Sentria and the Rainbow pulls lots of dirt into the water. I'd like to try that myself, except for the fact that I just have a big area rug upstairs (new) and my basement is 40+ year old thin carpet that will never be totally clean (needs to be replaced).

Also with Dysons the dirt "fluffs up" making it look like there is more than there is. In a Kirby it gets packed in the bottom of the bag which you can tell by lifting it from the bottom and feeling the weight. (Not criticizing anything about the Dyson cleaning ability, just sayin')

 

[vacu-finder]

I use a Panasonic upright 7 amp. The motor pre filter I'm using is a micro fit which is much better than the original foam piece, and multilayered bags.

Yes I do agree a more powerfull machine will pull up more. The dysons seem to lack the power especially when they start gewtting full

 

[vacu-finder]

Oooops. Forgot to mention Amps. The older Elctrolux's were only about 7-8 maps but had really good power. A central vac has around 12amp's operating and 14amp's at full draw. But a central vac has the water lift and flow that conventional Vacuums do not.
The Panasonic is only a single stage motor. I guess the point I'm trying to make is not all Vac's are not created equal, and the true test of performance is more like flow, volume of Air.

 

[sanitairered]

Two things..

'The dysons seem to lack the power especially when they start gewtting full'

Dyson vacuum cleaners don't lose suction as they fill up, and it wouldn't matter if they were full or empty, they still have more than enough power to thoroughly clean a carpet.

 

[vacu-finder]

......

 

[tolivac]

Central vacuum-at the canister outlet-most powerful.for the hose inlets in the house-less powerful-remember the unit has to pull thru all of that plumbing!Dyson filters can CLOG causing loss of suction or airflow.why do they have you clean or replace it?cyclones cannot filter out fine dust and dirt.Dealt with large versions in woodshops.those had baghouse filters on them.and of course the bin under the main cyclone to catch the large peices.Sanding dust goes to the baghouse filters.A lever was provided to allow you to shake them to get the fine dust into a trashbarrel or bin.

 

[kirbylover]

central vacs

How much power do they use? Do they run on 110V or 220V?

 

[suckolux]

My cyclones filter it out just fine! never any material on my washable filter, even after cleaning the whole apt from hardwood floor sanding! Nothing. Maybe they do not all work that way though.

 

[sanitairered]

Yeah there's nothing in my filter either. The cyclones filter everything out just fine for me..

 

[kenkart]

Amps...

Dont mean much to me, a 535 watt Lux G is hard to beat, and a Filter Queen is darn near unbeatable, and they dont draw anywhere near 10 amps! all amps are is something to sell people on!...my 2 cents worth..LOL!

 

[tolivac]

the filter in my Dyson DC07-came from the Kirby trade in pile-was encrusted with fine dirt and dog smell.Went to Best Buy and just bought a new one.Central vacuums can be had to run on 120v or 220V depending on the size of the central unit.Some commercial-institutional ones can run from 208-230V 3 phase.most household central vacuums run from 120V-15A or 20A.

 

[kirbylover]

Back to the original topic..

I wonder how people REALLY know how clean their carpet it? Do they use test strips, vacuum then clean out the vac and put a new bag in, reclean and cut the bag open? Or do they just get on their hands and needs and look at the carpet?

Do you think that some vacs may have higher suction and pull certain kinds of dirt from the carpet, whereas another vac with a better brushroll may pull out pet hair etc and other different kinds of dirt better?

I think Trebor nailed it on the head with the "3 B's". I do wonder if a 12amp Kirby would rip the carpet out of the floor though.

 

[tolivac]

A 12A Kirby would be interesting.Would be a beast of a vacuum!